Pioneering x-ray images selected for UNESCO's memory of the world register

The “Deutsches Röntgen-Museum” in Remscheid (Germany) preserves a collection of X-ray images taken by W. C. Röntgen during his research. Among them are three images of Röntgen's own hands and those of his wife, Anna Bertha. Three more images show Röntgen's hunting rifle, which he was able to analyze internally by using the new X-ray technology. These two series of historical pictures from the years 1895 and 1896 provide an outstanding illustration of the scientific revolution that Röntgen's discovery triggered especially in medicine and in materials science. In April 2025, those very first recorded X-ray photographs were added on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. The corresponding public ceremony took place on September 10, 2025 in Röntgen´s birth town Remscheid. UNESCO is thus honoring not only Röntgen's groundbreaking discovery of X-rays, but also the cultural, scientific, and technological implications of his early radiographs.